Let me start by saying I am a HUGE fan of Ico. (It is the ONLY game so far that I flat out REFUSE to sell back to the used game store) So you could imagine my excitement about Shadow of the Colossus. Well, let me tell ya, it only took an hour of play time before I bolted out of my house with the game and traded this dud back at the used game store. The sales guy at the used game store wasn't all that surprised. He told me that many others had returned the game saying that it flat out sucked. This was mere days after it was released.
You know, sometimes you hope that something like Ico was made because someone truly cared and took the time to do the right thing. Well, if Shadow of the Colusses is any indication the team who brought you Ico's either been tainted beyond all hope thanks to all the critical hype or the magic of Ico was just a fluke never to be repeated again, at least not by the well meaning but probably clueless individuals who brought it to you.
So definitely don't listen to the critics who adore this so called gem. It's a cubic zerconia at best, not the diamond they're making it out to be.:p
Microsoft's entry into the console market is about more than a PC company entering the console market. This is the first signs of a fundamental change in the way people will compute and who will get to deliver the machines consumers will use to compute with. What we're seeing is the beginning of the final separation between consumer level computers and workstation level computers.
Why is this happening? Because of the increases in capabilities at the lower end of the market, aka consumer level. Microsoft, if not the entire U.S. PC industry, can no longer ignore the console market because if they do now they will give away control of the consumer level computer market to companies like Sony and Nintendo. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but in the near future. So what is really going in isn't so much about a company entering a new market but a company having to create a presence to ensure future market share. Basically what you're seeing is the "VCR"ization of the consumer level computer. (I'm not using "PC" because that has too many preconceived notions attached to it)
People talk like Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony are putting out machines but the reality of the situation is that they are simply backers of different platforms. Yes, Nintendo too. The "Dolphin" is not a single machine but a development platform that is upgradable like a PC. As a matter of fact, Nintendo's "Dolphin" isn't even supposed to have a DVD drive, Panasonic's is. What this means is that the next round of battles should be looked at in the context of situations like Beta Vs. VHS, not Sony Vs. Microsoft Vs. Nintendo.
And it is precisely because of this reason that all you guys out there who thinks Sony will be king of the hill in the next round should think twice. Sony has always chosen to go with their own proprietary platforms and have paid dearly for it. It's already common knowledge that thanks to internal squabbling Sony has already decided to kill the PSX2's ability to play back DVD movies, the very feature which would have pretty much sealed the PSX2's acceptance as the next VCR. Thanks to this rather unsound business decision, there is a clear possibility that PSX2 may become Sony's next Beta and this time it's going to cost Sony a lot more than anything that Beta did. Especially with so much of Sony's operating profits tied to the PSX product line, a less than spectacular performance out of PSX2 may prove fatal to the corporation as a whole.
Already the industry insider buzz is that Nintendo is the one to watch for the next round. And now with Microsoft possibly in the races, the next round may prove to be a close battle between Nintendo and Microsoft. Where is Sega in all this? Please. Sega who? They may not even be in the console business two years from now. (Their arcade devision I'm sure will continue to do well)
All in all, I'm sure it will be a very interesting next few years in deed.
Microsoft's entry into the console market is about more than a PC company entering the console market. This is the first signs of a fundamental change in the way people will compute and who will get to deliver the machines consumers will use to compute with. What we're seeing is the beginning of the final separation between consumer level computers and workstation level computers. Why is this happening? Because of the increases in capabilities at the lower end of the market, aka consumer level, Microsoft, if not the entire U.S. PC industry, can no longer ignore the console market because if they do now they will give away control of the consumer level computer market to companies like Sony and Nintendo. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but in the near future. So what is really going in isn't so much about a company entering a new market but a company having to create a presence to ensure future market share. Basically what you're seeing is the "VCR"ization of the consumer level computer. (I'm not using "PC" because that has too many preconceived notions attached to it) People talk like Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony are putting out machines but the reality of the situation is that they are simply backers of different platforms. Yes, Nintendo too. The "Dolphin" is not a single machine but a development platform that is upgradable like a PC. As a matter of fact, Nintendo's "Dolphin" isn't even supposed to have a DVD drive, Panasonic's is. What this means is that the next round of battles should be looked at in the context of situations like Beta Vs. VHS, not Sony Vs. Microsoft Vs. Nintendo. And it is precisely because of this reason that all you guys out there who thinks Sony will be king of the hill in the next round should think twice. Sony has always chosen to go with their own proprietary platforms and have paid dearly for it. It's already common knowledge that thanks to internal squabbling Sony has already decided to kill the PSX2's ability to play back DVD movies, the very feature which would have pretty much sealed the PSX2's acceptance as the next VCR. Thnaks to this rather unsound business decision, there is a clear possibility that PSX2 may become Sony's next Beta and this time it's going to cost Sony a lot more than anything that Beta did. Especially with so much of Sony's operating profits tied to the PSX product line, a less than spectacular performance out of PSX2 may prove fatal to the corporation as a whole. Already the industry insider buzz is that Nintendo is the one to watch for the next round. And now with Microsoft possibly in the races, the next round may prove to be a close battle between Nintendo and Microsoft. Where is Sega in all this? Please. Sega who? They may not even be in the console business two years from now. (Their arcade devision I'm sure will continue to do well) All in all, I'm sure it will be a very interesting next few years in deed. pita pita pumpkin eata.
Slashdot Mirror
Let me start by saying I am a HUGE fan of Ico. (It is the ONLY game so far that I flat out REFUSE to sell back to the used game store) So you could imagine my excitement about Shadow of the Colossus. Well, let me tell ya, it only took an hour of play time before I bolted out of my house with the game and traded this dud back at the used game store. The sales guy at the used game store wasn't all that surprised. He told me that many others had returned the game saying that it flat out sucked. This was mere days after it was released.
:p
You know, sometimes you hope that something like Ico was made because someone truly cared and took the time to do the right thing. Well, if Shadow of the Colusses is any indication the team who brought you Ico's either been tainted beyond all hope thanks to all the critical hype or the magic of Ico was just a fluke never to be repeated again, at least not by the well meaning but probably clueless individuals who brought it to you.
So definitely don't listen to the critics who adore this so called gem. It's a cubic zerconia at best, not the diamond they're making it out to be.
I just sent mail to some major publications with the two web links. I'd like to encourage others to do so as well...
phong.
Microsoft's entry into the console market is about more than a PC company entering the console market. This is the first signs of a fundamental change in the way people will compute and who will get to deliver the machines consumers will use to compute with. What we're seeing is the beginning of the final separation between consumer level computers and workstation level computers.
Why is this happening? Because of the increases in capabilities at the lower end of the market, aka consumer level. Microsoft, if not the entire U.S. PC industry, can no longer ignore the console market because if they do now they will give away control of the consumer level computer market to companies like Sony and Nintendo. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but in the near future. So what is really going in isn't so much about a company entering a new market but a company having to create a presence to ensure future market share. Basically what you're seeing is the "VCR"ization of the consumer level computer. (I'm not using "PC" because that has too many preconceived notions attached to it)
People talk like Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony are putting out machines but the reality of the situation is that they are simply backers of different platforms. Yes, Nintendo too. The "Dolphin" is not a single machine but a development platform that is upgradable like a PC. As a matter of fact, Nintendo's "Dolphin" isn't even supposed to have a DVD drive, Panasonic's is. What this means is that the next round of battles should be looked at in the context of situations like Beta Vs. VHS, not Sony Vs. Microsoft Vs. Nintendo.
And it is precisely because of this reason that all you guys out there who thinks Sony will be king of the hill in the next round should think twice. Sony has always chosen to go with their own proprietary platforms and have paid dearly for it. It's already common knowledge that thanks to internal squabbling Sony has already decided to kill the PSX2's ability to play back DVD movies, the very feature which would have pretty much sealed the PSX2's acceptance as the next VCR. Thanks to this rather unsound business decision, there is a clear possibility that PSX2 may become Sony's next Beta and this time it's going to cost Sony a lot more than anything that Beta did. Especially with so much of Sony's operating profits tied to the PSX product line, a less than spectacular performance out of PSX2 may prove fatal to the corporation as a whole.
Already the industry insider buzz is that Nintendo is the one to watch for the next round. And now with Microsoft possibly in the races, the next round may prove to be a close battle between Nintendo and Microsoft. Where is Sega in all this? Please. Sega who? They may not even be in the console business two years from now. (Their arcade devision I'm sure will continue to do well)
All in all, I'm sure it will be a very interesting next few years in deed.
pita pita pumpkin eata.
Microsoft's entry into the console market is about more than a PC company entering the console market. This is the first signs of a fundamental change in the way people will compute and who will get to deliver the machines consumers will use to compute with. What we're seeing is the beginning of the final separation between consumer level computers and workstation level computers. Why is this happening? Because of the increases in capabilities at the lower end of the market, aka consumer level, Microsoft, if not the entire U.S. PC industry, can no longer ignore the console market because if they do now they will give away control of the consumer level computer market to companies like Sony and Nintendo. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but in the near future. So what is really going in isn't so much about a company entering a new market but a company having to create a presence to ensure future market share. Basically what you're seeing is the "VCR"ization of the consumer level computer. (I'm not using "PC" because that has too many preconceived notions attached to it) People talk like Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony are putting out machines but the reality of the situation is that they are simply backers of different platforms. Yes, Nintendo too. The "Dolphin" is not a single machine but a development platform that is upgradable like a PC. As a matter of fact, Nintendo's "Dolphin" isn't even supposed to have a DVD drive, Panasonic's is. What this means is that the next round of battles should be looked at in the context of situations like Beta Vs. VHS, not Sony Vs. Microsoft Vs. Nintendo. And it is precisely because of this reason that all you guys out there who thinks Sony will be king of the hill in the next round should think twice. Sony has always chosen to go with their own proprietary platforms and have paid dearly for it. It's already common knowledge that thanks to internal squabbling Sony has already decided to kill the PSX2's ability to play back DVD movies, the very feature which would have pretty much sealed the PSX2's acceptance as the next VCR. Thnaks to this rather unsound business decision, there is a clear possibility that PSX2 may become Sony's next Beta and this time it's going to cost Sony a lot more than anything that Beta did. Especially with so much of Sony's operating profits tied to the PSX product line, a less than spectacular performance out of PSX2 may prove fatal to the corporation as a whole. Already the industry insider buzz is that Nintendo is the one to watch for the next round. And now with Microsoft possibly in the races, the next round may prove to be a close battle between Nintendo and Microsoft. Where is Sega in all this? Please. Sega who? They may not even be in the console business two years from now. (Their arcade devision I'm sure will continue to do well) All in all, I'm sure it will be a very interesting next few years in deed. pita pita pumpkin eata.